


Blue Lips and Cold Hands

by baeconandeggs, doitsushine92



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: M/M, Past Character Death, Swearing, age gap
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-09
Updated: 2017-06-09
Packaged: 2018-11-11 11:21:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11147388
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baeconandeggs/pseuds/baeconandeggs, https://archiveofourown.org/users/doitsushine92/pseuds/doitsushine92
Summary: When Baekhyun moves to Philadelphia with his son, he doesn't expect to fall for the ghost living in his house.





	Blue Lips and Cold Hands

**Author's Note:**

> AUTHOR: [shinebrightlikdoitsu (AFF)](https://www.asianfanfics.com/profile/view/1167351)  
> PROMPT #: 036  
> 
> 
> Disclaimer: The celebrities' names/images are merely borrowed and do not represent who the celebrities are in real life. No offense is intended towards them, their families or friends. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this fictional work. No copyright infringement is intended.
> 
> Author's Note: dear prompter, i hope you like this *.* to the mods, congrats on another successful round!

Baekhyun stared at the big house in front of him feeling all kinds of helpless. It was still light out and he could feel the sun beating down on him. Baekhyun watched fondly as Sehun raced up the front steps, dodged past the moving men and disappeared from sight, leaving his dad behind with the car keys in one hand and his heart in the other.

His parents had insisted, saying it was for the best. He didn’t see how moving to the other side of the world, not to mention pull his son away from everything he’d ever known, was for the best; but he figured that his parents wouldn’t ask him to do something they had doubts in. So Baekhyun took the job offer, packed his belongings and took Sehun from their monotone, simple life in Bucheon to the hectic New York. Well, Philadelphia; close enough.

The house, he supposed, was nice enough. Two stories tall, white picket fence and a big garden, it seemed like the kind of house you would find in an All-American movie. Except in those movies, you would find a picture perfect family: a mom and a dad, three kids and maybe a dog. In this case, though, it was just Baekhyun and his son.

A loud shriek, followed by even louder laughter, pulled Baekhyun out of his thoughts; Baekhyun followed the noise inside the house, not surprised in the least to find Sehun playing hide and seek with one of the moving men. When he caught sight of his dad, Sehun immediately ran towards him; Baekhyun barely had time to brace himself before there was a ten year old screaming boy in his arms. Baekhyun caught his son and huffed out a laugh, sending the man an apologetic look.

“Sehunnie,” Baekhyun said, looking down at him, “Why don’t you just let the man do his job? We can play soccer in the backyard later.”

Sehun nodded and ran off with a giggle, taking the stairs two at a time as he went upstairs to look for his room. Baekhyun supervised the unloading of his boxes until the last one was placed in front of him, paid the men and locked the door behind them.

Baekhyun decided he’d rather unpack everything later, perhaps in the morning. For the moment, though, he settled with plopping down on his couch with a sigh, followed by a groan; his muscles ached and he could feel the exhaustion settle in once he allowed it. Baekhyun relaxed, melting into the couch and enjoying the silence.

His peace and quiet was short-lived, though, because Sehun was already thundering down the stairs and jumping on top of him, bouncing up and down excitedly. “Appa, you said we could play soccer!”

Baekhyun took a deep breath, looked at the eagerness in his son’s eyes and was up on his feet in a second, grabbing the soccer ball from where it lied abandoned by some boxes and walked outside, followed by a hooting Sehun.

Their backyard was big enough for them to run about without problem, and Baekhyun kicked the ball around, let Sehun score in a few goals before his son noticed and demanded Baekhyun played like he was supposed to.

They played until the sun set and they were both panting, their stomachs grumbling in hunger. After much insisting from Sehun, Baekhyun skipped making dinner in favour of ordering pizza to celebrate their first night as Americans. They didn’t have much to eat in the house, anyway.

That night, Baekhyun went to bed and fell asleep in a second. He was woken briefly, however, by the creaking of his door, and he opened his eyes to see Sehun stealthily making his way to his bed, creeping under the covers and wiggling in next to his dad. Baekhyun smiled into his pillow, throwing an arm around the unsuspecting Sehun, which caused him to gasp. Baekhyun hushed him and Sehun settled down quietly, breathing heavily.

-

The next morning Baekhyun started to regret not unpacking. He’d checked all the boxes already yet couldn’t find Sehun’s backpack. He had school that day, and Baekhyun would be damned if his kid was late for his first class in his new school.

“Appa, it’s ok if you don’t find it,” Sehun chirped as he shovelled cereal down his throat, “I can just stay here with you!”

Baekhyun smiled despite himself, not turning to look at his kid as he answered, “Nice try, but I’ll find it and you will go to school today and that’s it.”

Sehun deflated. Baekhyun knew his son had hidden the backpack, but after searching all morning, he could safely say he had no idea where it was. He’d checked Sehun’s room, his own, the kitchen, the living room; the spare room slash office, the bathrooms and the backyard. The only places left were the attic and the basement.

“Alright, Sehunnie,” Baekhyun said firmly, looking at him, “I only have two more options, and I can assure you I’m going to staple that backpack to your shirt.”

He smiled at his son and turned on his heels, headed for the basement. Baekhyun grabbed a flashlight from the counter on his way, turning it on just in time before he toppled over. The door, apparently, was followed directly by the stairs.

The wood creaked under his weight, and Baekhyun took his time going down to check for any light switch, but there didn’t seem to be any on the walls. Once he reached the bottom step, Baekhyun noticed there was a cord hanging from the ceiling; he pulled on it. For a brief moment, the basement was illuminated with a yellow light, but the bulb exploded a few feet from him and everything was black again.

“Fantastic,” Baekhyun sighed. He used the flashlight to look around the basement, doing a quick once over before deciding that everything was too dark and gloomy for his kid to hide his backpack here. Sehun probably took one look at the place and ran out.

He crept back upstairs, his nose twitching on his way; Baekhyun could already tell it was going to be a pain to clean that place.

Sehun was still sitting in the kitchen, breakfast bowl now in the sink. Baekhyun gave him a look as he passed, which Sehun returned with a cheeky grin. Baekhyun scoffed, but couldn’t stop the smiled that formed on his face.

The attic was considerably more illuminated, given the round window in one corner, and Baekhyun spotted the backpack immediately, on top of some boxes Baekhyun had moved up before going to bed. Sehun didn’t even try to hide it properly, which told Baekhyun about how little fate his kid had in him.

Baekhyun grabbed the backpack and turned back around to go downstairs when a flicker of movement caught his attention. However, when he focused his eyes on the spot, there was nothing there.

-

Sehun only looked more nervous the closer they got to his new school, and by the time Baekhyun was parking the car in front of the large building, Sehun was looking at him with a frightened look on his face.

“Sehunnie,” Baekhyun sighed, unbuckled their belts and pulled Sehun into his lap, “I understand that you’re scared because it’s your first day, but I can promise you it’ll be ok.”

Sehun was mostly limbs, and it was a long time ago when he stopped being small enough to fit in Baekhyun’s arms, but neither of them cared. Sehun wiggled around until his dad was holding him like he would a baby and pouted up at him.

“But appa,” he argued, “I can barely speak English! My teacher in my old school never taught us enough to survive out here in the wild. Why couldn’t we move to China? My Chinese is super duper fluent.”

Baekhyun laughed at Sehun’s choice of words. “I know, Hunnie. Tell you what: I can teach you English at home, or even hire you a tutor if you’d like.”

Sehun seemed to brighten up at that, scampering out of his dad’s arms and throwing the car door open. Baekhyun followed him with a smile, taking note of the school grounds. There was a teacher waiting for them at the top step of the entrance, hands behind her back and pencil skirt looking more uncomfortable than Baekhyun would have cared for had he been a woman.

“ _Good morning, you must be Mr. Byun_ ,” the teacher greeted, “ _I am Professor Mitchell, the school’s principal_.”

Baekhyun shook her hand, smiled as he said, “ _Nice to meet you, my name’s Baekhyun Byun, and this is my son, Sehun_.”

Sehun bowed shyly at the principal before ducking behind his dad. “ _He’s not very confident in his English yet, sorry_ ,” Baekhyun apologized sheepishly.

“ _That’s ok, but I expect you to grow out of it_ ,” the principal said sharply.

Sehun nodded, clinging to his dad’s trousers. Baekhyun crouched down to talk to his son, whispering, “Its ok, Sehunnie, you’ll get the hang of it.”

Baekhyun left with a peck to Sehun’s cheek and a bow to the principal. He’d parked the car along the road, left the keys in the ignition too. Baekhyun chided himself for being so careless.

When he got to his new job, Baekhyun was hopelessly lost when a secretary started spouting what he recognized as English but in a way he’d never heard before and was more than thankful when an intern rescued him from her clutches. He was shown to his new office by the same intern, whom introduced himself as Kim Jongin, and was left alone to browse through his files. He was originally an editor who worked mostly with manhwa and manga, but his new job also had him working as a translator for Korean writers looking to publish their books in the US. He met many of his co-workers, all of them Americans, but his new boss was Korean too and Baekhyun was more than glad for the familiarity. His name was Kim Minseok and he even invited Baekhyun and his son to join him and his spouse for dinner next week.

When the clock struck 5 pm, Baekhyun strode out the door, waving goodbye to Jongin and to the secretary that had his mind swimming during their first conversation. He knew Sehun had taken the school bus home, so he stopped by the grocery store to pick up something easy to make on his way home. He was yet to buy actual food, the only thing in his kitchen instant noodles and eggs. 

Baekhyun found Sehun playing videogames in the living room, the consoles and TV set up by him, obviously in a fit of boredom. When he heard the door open and the tinkling of keys, though, Sehun stood up and ran towards him with a shriek of “Appa!”

“Hey, Hunnie how was your day?”

“Appa, come meet Chanyeol hyung!”

Baekhyun didn’t have time to answer because Sehun was already tugging his dad to where his control lay forgotten. The living room was empty and it took Baekhyun approximately two seconds to figure out Sehun’s new friend fell in the imaginary category.

Baekhyun figured Sehun was a little too old for imaginary friends, but brushed it off as a coping mechanism. And because he’d never been one to deny Sehun anything, he crouched on the floor and smiled amicably.

“Hello, Chanyeol, nice to meet you.”

Sehun beamed but it quickly formed into a frown. “Appa, why don’t you answer hyung?”

Baekhyun faltered but quickly recovered with, “I’m sorry Chanyeol. I couldn’t understand what you said, as it was too fast. Could you repeat that for me, Sehunnie?”

“He’s asking if it’s ok that we’re friends,” Sehun repeated. Baekhyun nodded, smiling brightly.

That night, he put out a plate for Chanyeol per Sehun’s request, and even scooped some food on it because Sehun’s pout was too much for him. He reasoned with himself that he could just reheat it or take it as lunch the next day. However, the next morning as he was about to grab the plate from the refrigerator, he found it was gone.

“Sehun, where is the plate I put here last night?” he asked his son.

Sehun looked up from his cereal to answer, “Chanyeol hyung ate it when he got hungry.”

Baekhyun nodded, chuckling to himself. If Sehun was going to use his imaginary friends as scapegoats, then he wasn’t going to stop him; although now he had to find something else to eat for lunch.

-

Weeks went by; Baekhyun became quick friends with Minseok and his husband Yifan, not to mention he grew fonder and fonder of Jongin’s cuteness. Sehun also made friends with some kids in his class, namely an older boy called Kim Jongdae. Baekhyun thought that Sehun would have forgotten about the whole Chanyeol thing, but he never failed to tell his dad about what they had done that day together, like play soccer in the backyard or how Chanyeol hyung helped him with his math homework.

One night, when they were invited to visit Minseok and Yifan and Sehun was playing with their dog Eureoreungie, Minseok delivered him the good news that Yifan was pregnant with their first kid.

“Hyung, congratulations, that’s great!” Baekhyun exclaimed, making Yifan blush. The tall man was intimidating the first two seconds you met him, Baekhyun thought.

“Thank you, Baekhyun ah,” Minseok said, rubbing the back of his neck, “I was actually wondering if you had any advice?”

“Hum, let me think,” Baekhyun pondered for a second, “I don’t know what to tell you, I guess you just have to be careful and very understanding, especially during the mood swings. My best friend Yixing was perfect because of that; he would lend me his notes even after I yelled at him.”

“His... notes?” Yifan asked carefully.

“Ah, yes,” Baekhyun chuckled, “I guess I haven’t told you that. I was still in high school when I had Sehunnie, only sixteen years old. Didn’t you figure? I’m twenty six years old and my kid is ten.”

“I didn’t want to pry,” Minseok said shyly, “Do you mind me asking how it was.”

“Oh no, not at all,” Baekhyun waved his hand around, “It was… difficult, but totally worth it. My parents helped me a lot, and like I said, I had a perfect best friend. Most kids at my school didn’t understand, but it’s not like I cared.”

They heard Sehun squeal in delight when Eureoreungie pounced on him, the husky licking his face eagerly. Baekhyun watched him with fondness tugging at his heart. Yeah, he definitely wouldn’t change a thing.

-

Things became too much for Baekhyun, however, when he started to get home to find a mess. The living room would look like a battlefield, with Sehun standing in the middle, blaming it all on his Chanyeollie hyung, who’d wanted to have a pillow fight.

Sometimes, he would find toys strewn all over, or anything else that meant he would have to clean up. Baekhyun tried to be patient with his kid, but it was getting harder and harder, until one day he finally snapped at him.

“Sehun, that’s enough,” he growled, “I put up with it until now, but you have to grow up. Chanyeol is not real, do you understand? He is imaginary, and I’m sorry to tell you this but you are too old to have imaginary friends.”

Sehun stared at his dad with his mouth hanging open, tears threatening to spill out, and Baekhyun’s anger evaporated so fast it was as if it was never there. He’d been tired, work was kicking his ass, deadlines piling together and he was sure he was going bald at the back of his head, but he’d never meant to yell at his son.

“Oh my God,” Baekhyun whispered, “I am so sorry, appa didn’t mean to…”

However, Sehun was already turning on his heels and running upstairs. Baekhyun felt like absolute shit as he followed his son, but was too late because Sehun shut his bedroom door right on his face.

“Sehunnie,” Baekhyun sighed, softly hitting his head against the door, “Please open the door, I’m really sorry. I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that.”

Baekhyun was met with silence, the occasional sniff heard before it was quiet again. Baekhyun stood outside Sehun’s bedroom for some time, until it became clear that he wasn’t about to get any answer from his son anytime soon. He dragged his feet across the floor the whole way to his room, shutting the door behind him with a soft thud. The alarm clock on his bedside table displayed the hour 21:46 in bright green letters. The picture he had of himself with Sehun, beaming at the camera, only made his heart ache more; it had been taken when Sehun was seven years old on their first trip to Lotte World. Baekhyun had convinced Sehun to ride the Ferris wheel in exchange of the rollercoaster, and he had snapped the photo with his phone when they were at the very top. Sehun was positively beaming, his smile brighter than the lights in the park.

Baekhyun fell asleep with the image of his son crying printed behind his eyelids.

-

Sehun ignored his father the next morning. Baekhyun tried everything, asked him how he slept, told awful jokes he knew Sehun always laughed at no matter how lame, and even cooked pancakes instead of their regular menu of cereal. But Sehun barely spared him a glance, shoving bites of pancake into his mouth and taking his backpack to wait silently in the car.

The ride to school was even worse; Baekhyun made sure to play Sehun’s favourite songs, but the boy didn’t even hum along. He watched dejectedly as Sehun climbed out of the car and trudged up the steps.

Baekhyun was distracted the whole day at work, misplacing boxes and losing files and stumbling through the corridors like a zombie while bumping into everyone, knocking over coffee cups and mail carts. Eventually, Jongin took a moment to swing by Baekhyun’s office to ask what was wrong, a worried frown marring his features.

“I screwed up, Jongin ah,” Baekhyun sighed, “I told Sehun his imaginary friend was, well, that, imaginary, not real. I might as well go ahead and tell him the tooth fairy doesn’t exist.”

Jongin looked offended, as if Baekhyun had slapped him across the face, which didn’t make him feel any better.

“Hyung,” Jongin said slowly, “First, I have to make sure you understand you fucked up. Royally.”

“I know.”

“Like, major fuck up.”

“I know.”

“But I think I know what you can do to start to fix things.”

Baekhyun leaned forward eagerly. “What can I do?”

“Well, I remember my sister accidentally telling me Santa wasn’t real. She felt so bad, she dressed up as an elf and came into my room at night to tell me that, unfortunately, Santa couldn’t visit me but sent her instead. She even bought me an extra toy with her own money.”

“You’re telling me to dress up as his imaginary friend, when I don’t even know what he’s supposed to look like?”

“No,” Jongin sighed, “I’m telling you to try to make him think you believe him. Ask him questions about his friend, or maybe try ‘talking’ to him. Eventually, Sehun will come around.”

Baekhyun stared at the intern; it didn’t make much sense, but it was something, so he figured it was worth a try. Jongin had to go back to sorting files, so he let Baekhyun to swallow in his misery. Sehun had looked so utterly heartbroken that morning, it was eating at him.

After he concluded he couldn’t concentrate on work like that, Baekhyun rushed out of the building, sending Minseok a hurried text about a family emergency and skipped every red light on his way to Sehun’s school. Baekhyun convinced Sehun’s teacher that it truly was an emergency, and no it couldn’t wait until 2 pm, and maybe he did look like a complete mess  because she took pity on him and let Sehun leave early.

The car ride home was silent, although not by choice; Baekhyun kept trying to make small talk with his son, tried to coax a laugh or two out of him, but Sehun stared resolutely out the window. Baekhyun parked the car in the driveway but didn’t turn off the engine nor unlocked the doors. Instead, he unbuckled his seatbelt and turned to look at Sehun.

The sun was high in the sky behind them, illuminating the street they came from but casting shadows over Sehun’s face. His son was scowling deeply, not acknowledging his father as Baekhyun searched for words to say. His mouth felt dry and parched, and there was the same feeling in his stomach from when he had found out he was pregnant with Sehun and was facing the very real possibility of his parents getting angry and kicking him out.

“Sehun,” Baekhyun began, watching his son closely to keep track of his emotions. Sehun didn’t even twitch, but his eyes flickered to his dad’s face before settling on the flowers in their front lawn again. “I wanted to start by saying how sorry I am for yelling at you. I was… exhausted, but that is no excuse. I shouldn’t have lashed out because it wasn’t your fault. Also, if Chanyeol means a lot to you, and I think he does, then it is ok by me if you continue playing with him.”

Sehun finally looked at his father. He didn’t seem so angry or hurt anymore, though Sehun had always been a master at masking his emotions, even from Baekhyun. The radio station changed songs three times before Sehun spoke.

“Chanyeol hyung is real,” Sehun said then unlocked his door and climbed out of the car.

Baekhyun stared after his son with his mouth hanging open. He didn’t expect Sehun to say that at all; after all, Sehun was a smart kid, and he knew the difference between imagination and real life.

Baekhyun scrambled to follow his son. The front door to their house was still open, and Baekhyun followed the trail (aka Sehun’s shoes, socks and backpack) to the living room, where Sehun was standing by the coffee table, a pencil and a piece of paper in his hands.

“I’m going to prove to you that Chanyeol hyung is real,” Sehun said simply, placing the instruments on the table and stepping back to stand next to Baekhyun. Baekhyun sighed internally, ready to see Sehun’s heart break yet not ready to pick up the pieces.

And then Baekhyun started to wonder if, perhaps, the hit he’d taken to the head in the seventh grade was finally catching up to him. Maybe he was dreaming. Maybe he’d passed out. Because there was no way that pencil was fucking levitating in the air.

Except it was, and Baekhyun watched as the pencil scratched words on the paper, then dropped back to the table. Sehun moved forward and picked up the paper to give it to his dad.

Baekhyun took it automatically, but his eyes refused to move down and look at the words. Baekhyun steeled himself to read it.

I’m real

Baekhyun dropped the paper in shock. He didn’t believe in ghosts, because they weren’t real; no matter how many horror movies he watched with Yixing, there wasn’t a single cell in his body that thought of them as real. Sehun was watching him with apprehension in his eyes, bottom lip caught between his teeth, left foot tapping an irregular tempo on their wooden floor.

Before he could process what he was doing, Baekhyun was already hauling Sehun to the car.

“Appa, what are you doing?!” Sehun cried out in surprise, trying to tug his arm free, but unfortunately for him, Baekhyun had taken Minseok’s offer to go the gym with him, so his dad was no longer as thin or weak as before.

Baekhyun didn’t answer, merely buckled Sehun’s belt with trembling hands before getting in the driver’s seat and pulling out of their driveway, driving straight to Jongin’s apartment where he knew he’d find the boy.

As expected, Sehun trashed the whole way into the building, up the elevator and down the hall. Baekhyun knocked on the door with one hand while the other was preoccupied with holding Sehun in place. Jongin opened the door, towelling his hair dry, not wearing anything other than his boxers. Baekhyun screeched, rushing to cover Sehun’s eyes while Jongin shrieked on his own, scrambling to hide behind his door.

Baekhyun exclaimed, “Put some clothes on!”

“I’m sorry! I thought you were my roommate! He forgets his keys all the time!”

“Appa, you’re suffocating me,” Sehun’s muffled voice said from behind Baekhyun’s hand.

“Oh, sorry, Sehunnie,” Baekhyun apologized, removing his hand.

Jongin made a gesture that might have indicated ‘come in’ before rushing into his apartment. Baekhyun took careful steps in, Sehun no longer squirming as much as before. The apartment was nice for an intern, and Baekhyun smiled fondly when he spotted pictures of Jongin’s pets lining the walls of the entrance hall.

Jongin returned from what Baekhyun assumed to be his bedroom with clothes on, a shy smile on his face.

“Hey hyung,” Jongin muttered. If Baekhyun hadn’t been so freaked out, he would have cooed at the blush in Jongin’s cheeks; however, his mind was still racing from the events in his house and he couldn’t really think about anything else.

“Jongin, I need Sehun to stay with you today,” Baekhyun rushed, “I gotta do something very important and I can’t leave him alone.”

Jongin opened his mouth to say something, but Sehun beat him to it. “Not fair!” he protested, “I don’t want to stay with him, I wanna go home with Chanyeol hyung.”

If Jongin was offended, then it was overshadowed by his surprise at the name of Chanyeol. Baekhyun didn’t remember ever telling Jongin Chanyeol’s name, but Jongin was a smart kid and probably put two and two together.

“I can babysit today,” Jongin said, smiling at the outraged cry that Sehun gave at being called a baby.

Baekhyun sighed, thanking Jongin five times before leaving with a final kiss to Sehun’s crown. Baekhyun didn’t really know where he was going, driving aimlessly around town. He kept replaying the scene in his hand, the pencil being picked up and scribbling on the paper, the words ‘I’m real’ flashing behind his eyelids everytime he closed his eyes. Baekhyun didn’t notice he was driving back home until he was in the driveway, blinking slowly in surprise. Baekhyun sat there for a long time, staring at the front door and thinking.

For the most part, he thought about Sehun.

He thought about Sehun and his Chanyeollie hyung.

Baekhyun screamed, loud and long, burying his face in his hands. Peeking through his fingers, Baekhyun looked at the house again. The attic’s window caught his attention, and he watched the curtain flutter shut with a shudder. Baekhyun scolded himself for being a coward, taking deep breaths while steeling him to go inside his  _fucking haunted house_.

Baekhyun pushed the front door open, flinching at how well lit his home was; it certainly wasn’t a bad thing, but he could hear Yixing’s taunting voice in his head say something along the lines of ‘ _aren’t haunted houses supposed to be scary and darker and have like, generic blood pools in the foyer and shit?’_

“Shut up,” Baekhyun muttered to himself. Then laughed incredulously when he realized he was talking to himself. Baekhyun walked around the house, gingerly turning corners and opening doors, cringing whenever the wood creaked under his feet or the hinges screeched. He stopped in the living room, standing over the coffee table and stared at the pen Chanyeol had used.

 _This is ridiculous,_ Baekhyun thought,  _I’m starting to think of him as real. I’m going crazy._

A loud bang came from the kitchen; Baekhyun followed the sound and found a pot lying on the floor. A pot that, if Baekhyun recalled correctly – and he did – they kept in the bottom drawer under the sink. There was no way it could have crashed to the floor.

Unless a ghost had moved it; well, fuck.

“Chanyeol?” Baekhyun whispered, hands gripping his work shirt. The pot moved a few centimetres as if someone had kicked it. Baekhyun screamed. It was fucking ridiculous and unmanly, but Baekhyun screamed out loud and backed away in surprise. “Oh God,” he muttered, “Oh, mother of hell.”

Baekhyun forced himself to take a deep breath to calm his nerves, heart jackhammering in his chest. He thought about ways to communicate with ghosts (definitely losing his mind,  _fuck,_ ) but he knew shit. He then remembered a kid in his class, Huang Zitao; he’d been deaf and Baekhyun, in a desperate fit to talk to him about the latest Naruto volume, had tugged the boy to a cybercafé near their school and sat him down in front of one of the machines, a Word document open before typing in. They had communicated like that, through papers and technology while Baekhyun slowly learnt sign language.

Baekhyun shuffled backwards, accidentally hit his shoulder on the corner before turning around and walking straight upstairs and into his room, where he kept a private computer. Struggling to get the damn thing opened and running, Baekhyun ran his hand through his hair, considering counselling to deal with all this.

Baekhyun sighed mentally when the new document opened up on his screen and took a deep breath before whispering, “Chanyeol? If you’re there… if you’re really there, let me know.”  

He pushed the computer away from him and waited, legs tucked underneath his body. When nothing happened for almost a full minute, Baekhyun began to feel silly, but once again he widened his eyes when words appeared on the computer screen.

Hello there. I’m Chanyeol. It is nice to meet you.

“Fucking hell,” Baekhyun muttered. He ran his fingers through his hair in desperation. He stared at the screen in silence, breath quick.  “I’m losing my fucking mind.”

-

Baekhyun parked his car in front of Jongin’s apartment complex later that evening with renewed strength. Sehun was playing on the sidewalk with some guy Baekhyun had never seen before.

“Sehun?”

“Appa!” Sehun exclaimed, waving wildly at him, “This is Kyungsoo hyung, Jongin’s roommate.”

The other boy shook Baekhyun’s hands with a smile. “Jongin got a call from his sister and had to leave. I’m sorry if you worried.”

“Oh no, that’s ok, I figured anyway,” Baekhyun assured him, “Byun Baekhyun, at your service.”

“Do Kyungsoo.”

“Appa, Kyungsoo hyung is so cool, he can cook!”

“Unlike me?” Baekhyun asked playfully. Sehun pretended to think about it and then said, very seriously, “Yes.”

“You rascal!” Baekhyun grabbed his son and put him in a headlock, then used it to his advantage to rub his head while Kyungsoo chuckled amusedly. Baekhyun thanked Kyungsoo for taking care of Sehun and asked him to repeat the message to Jongin too, to which Kyungsoo agreed to and offered to babysit again if Baekhyun needed it. Sehun was, once again, outraged to be called a baby.

-

“I… spoke to Chanyeol,” Baekhyun decided to start right off the bat.

They were sitting in the living room, Sehun cross legged on the couch and Baekhyun across from him on the recliner. Sehun seemed to perk up at that, and Baekhyun knew his son well enough to recognize the smug smile on his face. Yixing was a bad influence on his godson.

“And?” Sehun prompted slyly.

“And I don’t know how I feel about him,” Baekhyun answered honestly, sighing at the end of his sentence. It was true that he talked to Chanyeol, via Word document, and even if the ghost (Jesus Christ) had assured him that he had no bad intentions and was just lonely, Baekhyun had seen enough horror movies to know not to trust some ghost. Especially when they ask to play with your kids; next thing you know, they turn out to be a demon inhabiting your creepy ass doll and kill you.

“But appa, Chanyeol is harmless!” Sehun insisted, eyes going wide, “I’ve known him for a long time and he’s never tried to hurt me, not even once!”

“I know that, Hunnie, but,” Baekhyun sighed again, “But I can’t be sure just yet, alright? Can you give appa some time? To figure out how I feel about this?”

Sehun’s head nearly fell off with how fast and how hard he nodded.

-

For a week, Baekhyun went about his days in a daze. Sehun kept playing around with Chanyeol as if nothing had happened, to Baekhyun’s halfway relief. Halfway because on one hand Sehun didn’t seem affected by how things had turned out but also because Baekhyun couldn’t wrap his head around the fact that his son was playing with a ghost.

When he told Yixing of his dilemma, Baekhyun first had to assure his best friend that no, he had not in fact lost his mind and was being completely serious. After a long pause, during which Baekhyun could only hear his friend’s breathing through the phone, Yixing said: “Word document isn’t very effective if you want to have a conversation, is it?”

“Is that all you have to say?” Baekhyun sputtered, incredulous.

“Well, that is actually the only thing I can think of without screaming so yes.”

Baekhyun stared off into the distance as he said, “And what do you suggest I do?”

“Go with a medium or some shit and ask for help.”

“Why don’t I get a better friend? Hmm, does that sound like a good idea?”

-

In the end he followed Yixing’s advice, which is why he found himself standing outside a small little shop in the heart of town, tucked away between a convenience store and a florist. The sign in the door read OPEN and as soon as he stepped foot inside the local he was assaulted with five different scent candles lit at once.

The medium was sitting at a round table behind a purple curtain, and laid in front of her were tarot cards and more lit candles. She was a middle-aged woman, somewhere between her late forties and early fifties, with dyed black hair and a hook-like nose. She was dressed in all red, save for a blue bracelet on her wrist. Baekhyun recognized it as a Bullock’s Eye, used to ward off bad vibes in some cultures.

“May I help you, son?” the medium asked.

“Um, yes,” Baekhyun answered.

“Are you sure? You sound uncertain,” she said, giving him a once over.

“Yes. Please ma’am, I really don’t know what to do.”

“Alright, tell me and I shall help.”

So Baekhyun told her everything; from the moving to the US to Sehun’s new friend to his conversation with Chanyeol. Throughout the story, the medium was impassive, listening attentively but giving no sign of emotion. Finally, when Baekhyun was done, she said:

“It seems to me like you have a ghost unwilling to pass,” she said, “Sometimes spirits don’t wish to move on, for whatever reason. Most of them because they feel like they shouldn’t have died; these are more often than not very dangerous. But from what you’ve told me, it seems like this one simply wishes to stay on this plane. He certainly doesn’t sound harmful, and you’ve been living in this house for months now? He would have done something by now if it were his intention. Ghosts are very impatient, you see.”

“Then what should I do?” Baekhyun asked anxiously.

“You can’t make a ghost move on if he doesn’t wish to,” the medium mused, “But you can maybe entertain him? Are you planning on staying here for a long time?”

“I don’t know,” Baekhyun sighed, “I was honestly thinking about moving back to Bucheon in a few years.”

“Well, for the time being, try to let your son play with him. In fact,” the woman turned around in her seat and began rummaging through some drawers on the stand behind her. She produced a white, thin necklace with a green eye painted on the oval pendant and offered it to Baekhyun. “This will allow you to see and hear him, in case you want to make sure nothing fishy is going on. I will give it you for half a price, because you are such a nice young man.”

Baekhyun accepted the necklace with shaky hands and slid it on. It felt cool against the skin of his chest. He paid the medium for her services and left the store with light shoulders and a slight excitement in his step as he hurried back home.

-

Baekhyun walked through the front door of his home like a warrior would enter a battlefield. He spotted Sehun sitting in the living room, the turned on TV blaring The Fairly Odd Parents and a tall, lanky figure guffawing at was going on on the show, sitting on the couch next to his son. With cautious footsteps, Baekhyun edged into the room; Sehun didn’t notice him at first, but Chanyeol did, and they locked eyes long enough for Chanyeol to realize that Baekhyun could see him. The ghost’s eyes widened comically and he gaped at Baekhyun. Sehun then took notice of his dad and rushed to hug him in greeting, shouting “Appa!” as per usual.

“You- you can see me?” Chanyeol stammered, taken aback. Sehun looked between his dad and his friend in wonder, his eyes lighting up before saying: “Appa, can you see Chanyeol hyung now? Awesome!” and then proceeded to tell them both how much fun they were gonna have now that they could play together.

However, Baekhyun was too preoccupied with staring at the boy in front of him. Because, really, Chanyeol was just a boy; he seemed to have died around the age of twenty-one or maybe twenty-two, with raven black hair and the cutest set of ears Baekhyun had seen. His round eyes seemed to glint and the slowly forming smile was full of teeth. Baekhyun was transfixed.

“… and then we can all eat ice cream and have fun!” Sehun’s loud shout startled Baekhyun out of his reverie and the man looked over at his son to see him beaming so hard his face almost split in two.

“That all sounds very fun, Sehunnie,” Baekhyun said, “But I’m afraid we can’t do any of those things if you don’t do your homework. Have you?”

Sehun’s guilty face was enough answer and Baekhyun pointed his finger to the staircase. Once Sehun was gone, Baekhyun turned to the ghost in his living room.

“Um, Chanyeol,” Baekhyun started nervously, “I’m Byun Baekhyun, Sehun’s dad.”

“I know,” Chanyeol laughed, “I’m Park Chanyeol.”

Baekhyun very well had a cardiac arrest when Chanyeol lunged forward and shook his hand.

Shook. His. Hand.

The gasp he let out must have shown Chanyeol how unexpected it was because the boy laughed loudly and said, “I can touch you, yes. I can also sit on furniture.”

Baekhyun was still gaping like a fish at their hands. Chanyeol noticed he still had an iron grip on him and released him, not without giving him a squeeze to prove his point. The living room was silent after that, Chanyeol peering curiously at Baekhyun while the young father tried to wrap his head around the events of the day.

-

Now that Baekhyun was able to see and hear everything Chanyeol did, things became easier in their household. And louder, too; if Baekhyun believed ten-year-old Sehun could brew up a storm, he certainly wasn’t ready for what Chanyeol could do.

In a way, he was reminded of himself when he was a kid, playing around with Yixing in the backyard. Chanyeol was incredibly energetic and joyful, but he was also sweet and kind of cute. Of course, that didn’t stop him from scaring the shit out of Baekhyun from time to time. For example, he once popped out of nowhere in the kitchen and Baekhyun nearly dropped the hot pan he was holding.

On nights when Sehun would be out with Jongdae, Chanyeol would content himself with sitting near Baekhyun while he worked. Baekhyun also find out ghosts slept, in a way; apparently, keeping himself on this plane of existence was exhausting. It was more like Chanyeol passed out on the spot, eyes wide open as he snored away.

Because Baekhyun had a full-time babysitter at home, he was able to go out more with Minseok for baby-shopping. During one of their outings to Toys R Us, Baekhyun was helping his boss pick yet another teddy bear for the baby when the subject of Chanyeol came up. Sort of.

“Minseok hyung,” Baekhyun began, weighing two different stuffed fish on his hands, “Do you believe in the supernatural?”

The store was crowded, kids running around screaming and exasperated moms trailing behind them. Minseok was a few feet away from him over by the tiny plushies, the ones that were tiny enough to fit in the palm of your hand. Baekhyun had a lot of those growing up and so did Sehun.

“I don’t know,” Minseok shrugged, turning to look at his dongsaeng after deciding on the brown bear, “I’ve never given it much thought. Why?”

Baekhyun shrugged too. “Just wondering. I mean, if someone were to tell you that they have seen something, like a ghost or whatever, would you believe them?”

Now he had the full attention of his boss. Minseok was looking at him with curiosity, brows furrowed cutely. “Depends on who asks. I mean, if it were someone I knew and trusted, I guess I’d believe them. Do you have something to say to me?”

This was Baekhyun’s chance to tell someone that wouldn’t charge him for it. To tell someone he could really talk to.

“No, hyung,” Baekhyun said instead, “I guess I’ve been watching too many movies lately.”

-

“Appa,” Sehun said that night over dinner. The pie baking in the oven was distracting Baekhyun but he still hummed in acknowledgment.

Chanyeol nearly knocked over a flower pot when the oven went off, sending Sehun into a fit of giggles and even Baekhyun cracked a smile as he produced the dessert. They settled down around the coffee table, with Chanyeol looking at the pie with faraway eyes. Baekhyun had asked him once if he could eat but the ghost denied sadly. Which meant Sehun really had eaten Baekhyun’s lunch all those weeks ago. Too bad it was too late to ground him.

“Appa,” Sehun repeated, this time with his mouth full of pie, “My school’s going on a trip but I need you to sign the permission.”

“Where to?” Baekhyun asked.  

“New York,” Sehun announced happily, magically procuring a bunch of papers from out of nowhere, “Here says we’ll go to the museum and Broadway and the zoo and a bunch of other cool places! Daddy, please!”

Instead of giving a straight answer, Baekhyun said: “Let me think about it.”

Truth be told, he was gonna let Sehun go on the trip, but he wanted his kid to suffer for a little while.

Sehun was gone two days later with a happy wave in the general direction of the house and a bounce on his step. Baekhyun had that week off, conveniently, so he was still in his pajamas when he waved goodbye. Chanyeol was there too, wide grin on his face as he shouted after Sehun to be careful and not get lost in the big apple. It was a good thing they were the only ones who could see or hear him; otherwise Baekhyun wouldn’t have known what to say if asked about a young boy in jeans and t-shirt screaming about pedestrians.

Once they were alone, Baekhyun got a deep sense of dread as he realized that all their interactions had been with Sehun guiding the conversation so he had no idea what to say to Chanyeol. The ghost was perfectly oblivious, however, already settled down on the couch and turning on the Xbox. Baekhyun felt unbelievably old when he realized he didn’t recognize the game; Chanyeol selected the Continue option and the screen showed a long hallway, dimly lit with blood stains on the floor. At the far end of the corridor Baekhyun could make out a man in a wheelchair, slumped over.

“What’s that?” Baekhyun sat down next to Chanyeol, knees tucked underneath his body. Chanyeol stopped the game so he could give the young dad a look of disdain and unbelief.

“I- you- what?” he stammered. Apparently, it was unforgivable for Baekhyun not to know the name of the massacre currently unfolding on his TV screen. Chanyeol gaped at him with wide eyes, and Baekhyun noticed that his figure was flickering. As if he was lacking signal or something.

“Chanyeol, you’re disappearing,” Baekhyun said in alarm. Chanyeol turned his attention away from the shorter male to look down at his own body and laughed airily.

“Yeah, uh, this happens. Sometimes,” he coughed, “I gotta take a nap, but here, play.” The ghost passed the controls over to Baekhyun before closing his eyes. He started snoring almost immediately and Baekhyun was left alone with the console and the mysterious game. Resuming the game, Baekhyun advanced with slow steps, until it clicked.

“Oh!” Baekhyun exclaimed with a whisper, nodding his head real hard, “Outlast! Oh, hell no.”

Baekhyun exited the game with no regrets and went upstairs to his room to google playthroughs. He chose one titled ‘Dan plays OUTLAST (alone in the dark)’ by danisnotonfire. The next twenty five minutes were spent half-laughing, half hiding behind his fingers. By the end of the video Baekhyun was curious about the ending, so he moved on to Pewdiepie’s channel and watched the entire series.

That night, when Chanyeol woke up and insisted Baekhyun played, the man agreed with less reluctance than he would have felt had he not watched the videos.

They started a new game and Baekhyun paraphrased Dan by saying, “Ugh, I’ve always hated driving country roads, this is off to a very bad start.” Chanyeol giggled at his comment, and Baekhyun, liking the way Chanyeol laughed, didn’t have the heart to tell him that he was merely copying a youtuber. Throughout the game, Baekhyun continued imitating whatever Dan said, smiling to himself as Chanyeol laughed and laughed.

“Who closed the gate? Satan closed the gate.”

“Oops, I was too fat to go through the door for a minute there, nothing to talk about.”

“Oh and there’s a battery just like in Five Nights at Freddy’s, fantastic, I love life.”

“Oh great I’ll have to open doors quickly.”

“Ah, a convenient hole.”

“Note to self, they will time dramatic moments to music.”

However, after the TV static attacked Baekhyun’s ears, his phone started ringing and he had to stop the game to pick it up.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Baekhyun,” Minseok’s voice came through, “I’m sorry to bother you, I know you have the week off, but there was a mix up at the office and we need all hands on deck.”

Baekhyun noticed how his boss sounded frantic, so instead of groaning in despair like he would have, he simply sighed with a, “Alright hyung, I’ll be right there.”

Chanyeol was looking at him in curiosity. “What happened?”’

“I have to go down to the office,” Baekhyun explained, searching for his shoes.

“But it’s night time,” Chanyeol frowned, looking out the window.

“Yeah, well, duty calls. Sorry, but you can continue playing if you want.”

Chanyeol shook his head, “No, no, I’m too scared to play it alone.”

Baekhyun had to raise an eyebrow at that. “You’re scared of a horror game?” he asked incredulously. If Chanyeol had any blood in him, he probably would have blushed.

-

The following days saw Baekhyun and Chanyeol bonding over the dumbest things, like TV shows and childhood memories. Baekhyun found out Chanyeol was born in Seoul and moved with his parents to the States around the time the Korean War started; the ghost then launched on a story about his older sister refusing to speak English because she hadn’t agreed to moving. Baekhyun told him about how Korea had changed ever since, but realized perhaps a little too late that it wasn’t a good idea because then Chanyeol became fascinated with dramas and K-Pop, which was adorable and terrifying. Baekhyun also recounted his own stories from his growing up and about how he came to have Sehun.

They bonded over their shared nationality and their love for music, and eventually Baekhyun was able to come up with new conversational topics without starting every sentence with: “So this one time Sehun…”

-

Two nights before Sehun’s scheduled return home, Chanyeol convinced Baekhyun to stargaze with him in the backyard. It was a clear night, and not just because they were so far away from the city; it was a full moon, and the stars twinkled in the sky like little diamonds.

Chanyeol tugged Baekhyun out of the house by the wrist, giggling like an excited child as he urged Baekhyun to lie down on the blanket the young ghost had put out earlier. There were pillows scattered around and a picnic basket to the side. It felt almost like a date, Baekhyun thought giddily. If he were to be honest with himself, the past week had been something very close to heaven on earth for him; Chanyeol had made him laugh harder in ten minutes than he had in years with his live friends. It was so easy to talk to him, too; they understood each other. For reasons unknown to him, Baekhyun had somehow managed to fall for a dead boy in a week; he felt as if he were a character in a bad fanfiction written by a lonely teenager.

“The stars look beautiful tonight,” he commented, looking up at the sky. He could sense Chanyeol turning to look at him.

“You know what else is beautiful?” the ghost asked. Baekhyun fought back a smile and hummed.

“You,” the cheesy line, he expected. He did not expect Chanyeol to grab his chin and turn his head to the side so he could kiss him. Chanyeol’s lips were cold, much like his hands, but Baekhyun found he didn’t mind at all. Chanyeol kissed and held him like he were something precious, and with such tenderness it made Baekhyun’s heart ache in his chest.

Chanyeol’ lips slowly moved against his, and the hand on his chin slowly moved to cradle his jaw, thumb rubbing circles on his cheek. Baekhyun let his own hand wander out to whatever he could reach. After much kissing, Chanyeol shifted them to be more comfortable, which ended up with Baekhyun lying semi on top of him, one hand holding on to Chanyeol’s arm and the other holding himself up.

Chanyeol looked at him like he was the sun, and Baekhyun felt like smiling till his face fell off. At the moment, he didn’t want to think of the impossibility of their relationship or of Sehun coming home and wondering why his dad and best friend were acting weird; he just wished to stay wrapped up in Chanyeol’s arm and kiss him, even if it made him cold.

-

“Appa!” Sehun shouted from the front door. Baekhyun looked up from his desk in surprise; he wasn’t expecting his son to be back so soon.

“In the office,” he called out. Baekhyun could hear the pounding of footsteps getting near to his office, and then the door was thrown open and Sehun was running towards his dad, backpack bouncing with every step.

“Hey buddy,” Baekhyun grinned, hoisting Sehun up on his lap. His son had the brightest grin he had seen in a while. “How was your trip? I thought you were coming back tomorrow, did something happen?”

“Nope,” Sehun denied, shaking his head, “We just got back early. I missed you, appa,” he threw his arms around his dad’s neck, squeezing the life out of Baekhyun. The young dad was surprised but didn’t refuse the hug.

“Where’s Chanyeol hyung?” Sehun asked a while later. They were sitting in the kitchen, sharing a tub of chocolate mint ice cream.

“He’s resting,” Baekhyun answered simply, feeling a blush creeping up his neck.

“Really?” Sehun tilted his head cutely, “He hardly ever has to rest. He doesn’t like to move around a lot.”

“I guess he just had quite a workout, then,” Baekhyun concluded, fighting the smile on his face.

-

EPILOGUE

Sehun ran around the backyard, paper party hat with the words ‘Birthday Boy’ on his head. It was a warm spring afternoon, perfect for a birthday party. Sehun had invited his friends Jongdae, Lu Han and Junmyeon, and currently the four of them were playing hide and seek; Baekhyun could see the top of Lu Han’s head peeking out from a tree, and Junmyeon’s shoes under the tablecloth. Jongdae was the only one properly hidden. Baekhyun gave Sehun enough time to catch two of his friends before calling them over to sing happy birthday. Once all the kids were settled around the picnic table, Baekhyun pulled out the cake from the box and lit the eleven candles.

“Who’s that?” Jongdae asked out of nowhere, pointing with his index finger to the house. Baekhyun followed the direction of his finger and stifled a gasp when he realized he meant Chanyeol. The ghost seemed surprised, too; his eyes went wide as saucers. It was kind of cute, except Baekhyun didn’t have time to coo at his boyfriend (cue inner giggling from Baekhyun) because now all the kids were demanding to know who was the tall hyung sitting quietly in the porch.

“He’s my friend!” Sehun announced proudly, “He lives in the house with us, right appa?”

“Yeah,” Baekhyun agreed shakily, motioning for them to start singing. After the cake, all the boys demanded Chanyeol played with them, and the lanky ghost was more than happy to join the fun. Baekhyun allowed himself to worry about what the parents would say about a young boy living with him for approximately five minutes before he decided they were in America after all and he could do whatever and whomever the fuck he wanted.

The party was over at six, and once all the kids had been picked up by their moms and Sehun was passed out on his bed, Baekhyun led Chanyeol to the office for a surprise.

“Chanyeol,” Baekhyun said, “I know you miss your family.”

Chanyeol seemed confused, not sure of where the conversation was going but Baekhyun held up a hand to stop him from interrupting. “I did some research; your sister has a grandchild right here in Philadelphia, and I have their number. She lives with them.”

There was a pregnant silence in the room. Chanyeol was staring at him with no expression and Baekhyun was beginning to worry he’d overstepped his boundaries and now Chanyeol would hate him, but he worried for nothing because he was suddenly wrapped up in a hug and Chanyeol was kissing the crown of his head, muttering his gratitude over and over.

Baekhyun hugged him back, relief flooding his body. Even though his intentions had always been the best, he knew there was a chance Chanyeol would get mad at him; he wasn’t even sure what he expected Chanyeol to do with the information. But had he been in his shoes, just knowing his brother was near by, alive, would have made him happy.

Baekhyun tipped his head back and stood on his tiptoes to land a kiss on Chanyeol’s jaw, then another on his cheek and finally one on his lips. The boy melted against him, let Baekhyun lead the kiss to his heart’s content. They kissed for a while, Baekhyun more than happy to let Chanyeol climb into his lap once the older (?) boy was seated on his desk chair. It was odd, but Chanyeol actually smelled of apples; he had never realized that.

Neither of them heard quiet footsteps making their way downstairs, or the door creak open. They did hear, however, the loud gasp. In Baekhyun’s defence, he was too busy relishing in the cute little sounds Chanyeol made. They sprung apart immediately, and Baekhyun nearly had a heart attack when he saw Sehun standing on the doorway, clutching his teddy bear to his chest.

“Sehun,” Baekhyun’s throat felt dry and parched, “I can explain.”

Chanyeol scrambled off his lap in a heartbeat; Baekhyun would have complained had the situation not been so… awkward. His son didn’t even seem mad, just very confused. Baekhyun and Chanyeol looked at each other in despair for a moment; then Chanyeol turned to look at Sehun and said: “If this upsets you, I will go away.”

Baekhyun gaped at him at a loss for words, but Chanyeol paid him no mind. The ghost had his eyes trained on Sehun, waiting for the kid to speak his verdict. Baekhyun wanted to believe his son would be ok with his dad and his hyung… dating, but he was still terrified because what if he wasn’t? What if he decided it bothered him? Chanyeol would most likely keep his promise and go away, and that certainly wasn’t something Baekhyun wanted to happen, not in a million years. His life was finally full again and he wasn’t ready to lose Chanyeol.

“I don’t mind.”

Just three little words were enough to send Baekhyun into absolute bliss.

After putting his son back to bed, Baekhyun slid down the door to the floor with a sigh. Chanyeol sat next to him and grabbed his hand to play with his fingers.

“Would you really have gone away?” Baekhyun asked quietly, “If Sehun had asked you to?”

“Yes,” Chanyeol whispered. Baekhyun lifted their hands to kiss Chanyeol’s knuckles, and then pulled him in to kiss him tenderly.

“Thank you for respecting my kid,” he whispered against his lips, “I love you so much.”

Chanyeol’s smile was dazzling. “I love you too.”

 


End file.
